Offers
by Andromeda Writes
Summary: It's just a normal day at work, until it isn't. (Work AU) (One Shot)


It was going to be a good day.

Cinder tried not to let her mind wander as she pulled the next car into the repair bay. Judging by how it drove, the owner definitely needed to have gotten the brakes replaced about six months ago, and it needed some power steering fluid, especially since the tires whined at her as she struggled to turn the wheel. She made a note to ask the owner if they'd been having trouble keeping the fluid levels up. If she were lucky, she'd need to replace the rack-and-pinion, and thus get to stay late on her one half day.

Not that she ever wanted to stay too late, but today, one of the junior executives was checking in on their shop. Cinder had talked with him a few times and had decided that she preferred his presence over that of Aimery's, another junior exec who was smart as a whip, and about as critical as one.

Cinder had liked Mr. Huang from the first meeting, almost a year ago when he visited the shop for the first time. He was handsome and kind. Though he made her nervous, he had mentioned that her skill impressed him. He was a businessman, not a mechanic. He didn't understand the work Cinder and her colleagues did, but rather the profit margins of it. And apparently, of all the shops he was in charge of monitoring in the Greater Midwest market, she was the best at her job.

Too bad-she needed a raise, not an ego boost.

Almost every conversation since then had been about her work. All business, except for the way she started analyzing his every word when she went home at night.

Cinder popped the hood of the car and then shut it off, hooking the keys on the side of her toolbox once she got out and moving to assure the car was securely on the lift. She grabbed a bottle of power steering fluid and opened the hood. Sure enough, the reservoir looked about bone dry. She never liked ruining a client's day with unscheduled repairs that they often needed but never budgeted for. The worst was when customers came in for a simple oil change and left hours later, having had to replace a seized caliber because Cinder smelled the faintest scent of hot brakes.

Sighing, she set the bottle down and shut the hood, entering the lobby of the repair shop in order to talk to the owner of the vehicle.

After getting the go-ahead, Cinder went into the supply area to retrieve the parts. She let their head inventory clerk know that she'd be taking a part that had not been ordered by that customer and went about her business.

When she got back to her repair bay, she had a visitor.

"Cinder. How are you?"

He was giving her a friendly half-smile and she couldn't help but return it. "You remembered to call me Cinder! I'm great. How are you, Mr. Huang?"

"I'm well," he replied. "You didn't remember that I asked you to call me Kai, though."

"I remembered," she admitted. "Here to inspect my work? I haven't even started."

He lifted his chin toward the car. It was a 2011 Acura TL, black on black and beautiful, but poorly maintained. "What's wrong with it?" he asked.

"Needs new rotors and pads and, a new addition to this appointment, a rack. The old one has a pretty bad leak, if what the client is telling me is true."

"Are they ever honest?"

She shrugged. "You'd be surprised. They don't always know what they're talking about, but if you know what you're doing, you can kind of navigate through the confusion."

"And you do know what you're doing."

She almost blushed. "For the most part, yes."

His casual half-smile evolved into a fully-involved smirk. "You're too humble."

She turned away from him, saving the eye roll for when he could not see the disrespect. It wasn't her intention for it to be disrespectful, necessarily. It just made her feel awkward to be complimented so much. She triggered the lift so it would pick the car up and she could begin her work, effectively cutting off conversation for the thirty seconds it took for the lift to get to the standard working height for a sedan.

When the noise subsided, she asked, "Are you just here for the quarterly check up?"

"Surprise audit." She could hear the smile in his voice. "And we're assessing some things about this shop. It's one of the most profitable and highly regarded in the Greater Midwest market, you know." She hummed in response. "Which means good things for the employees. Your surveys get the highest compliments. Many of them name specifically you."

She nearly dropped the driver she was attaching to the end of her power drill. "Really? I never read those things." She really didn't. Cinder didn't like people who were egotistical, so she tried to avoid becoming that way herself. She did her job the best she could and anyone's opinion was just that.

"You should. I think you received a bad review once, and it was because the client thought you were too nice and refused the repair because they thought you were lying."

Cinder drowned out the need for conversation while she used the drill to get the tire bolts off. When she stopped to pull the tire away, she glanced over at him. "I remember that guy. An older gentleman. Came in for an oil change and then bit my head off for implying that he was driving with a clogged catalytic. Something about how women know nothing about cars. Came in two days later in a tow truck with his car hooked to the back. Blew his whole exhaust apart."

Kai laughed. "Guess he regrets leaving such a negative review, then."

She grabbed her tools to start taking the brake system apart. "I doubt it. He was pretty bitter about it."

More noise held off continued conversation. It was hard enough to hear each other in the garage anyway, and it was hopeless if she was actually working with power tools. When she moved to another tire to remove it and the parts she needed to replace, she looked back at Kai. "You never said how long you'd be here."

"A few days," he said. He looked so clean in his well-tailored suit; out of place in an auto shop, but not for a dinner with the US president. "Like I said, we're doing more than the usual. They've got me posted up at a Hilton."

She got to removing the tire from the car and once she finished, she replied, "How nice of them. Are they reimbursing your mileage and your meals, too?" She was teasing him now.

"They are." He didn't miss a beat. "And they said something about me taking you to a nice dinner."

She had a near miss with the rotor and her head while she was removing it. Sudden nerves struck her. "Is that so?"

"Yes. Do you enjoy seafood? Open Ocean has the best crab cakes."

"Seafood is nice." She dragged her drill to the other side of the car. "It's only a business dinner, right? Nothing more?"

"Of course." A chuckle came from deep in his throat. "What do you think of me, Cinder?"

He had mentioned, once, that if he ever moved to a different company, he'd offer to take her out. She was a great person, he had told her, not just a great employee. She had a way with the customers and it was impossible to fake that level of care.

She didn't look at him now. "It was a valid question." She hoped he couldn't read in her expression that her stomach was full of butterflies.

Not exactly in a good way. She had nothing nice to wear to a restaurant like Open Ocean. And what if he was using this as an excuse to get her alone? She wasn't so sure she would be able to say no, what with the ambience of a nice restaurant and with the way the low light might reflect off of his caramel eyes.

She was suddenly embarrassed by her thoughts, happy that he couldn't read her mind.

Kai nodded. "I understand that. I'm sure you get asked out a lot, so it makes sense that you'd want to verify that this dinner is strictly business."

Was he joking, or was he insinuating that she was attractive enough to have suitors lining up? Was he flirting? Didn't they have a policy against that? She couldn't recall if they had a company-wide rule against inter-office dating.

She glared at him before cutting off conversation by removing the last two tires. When she finished, she cleared her throat. "You can get my number from Hector and we can talk about this later. You're slowing me down and I'm leaving as soon as I finish this."

He deflated, but only a bit. "I'll see you later, Cinder."

She hummed a reply.

* * *

Cinder's shift only ran about an hour later than she was scheduled, for, and she was glad for the overtime. Still, she was anxious about the evening. Kai had caught her just before she left, coming out of her manager, Hector's, office. He told her he'd be there until closing, but that he'd already made reservations at Open Ocean for 8 and that he'd see her there.

She had said okay and then left quickly, trying to figure out what she could possibly wear.

Maybe she could wear something of Iko's? Though Iko had a fuller figure, and was a bit taller than her. She learned a long time ago that that made a big difference.

She wasn't sure if she still had a dress she'd worn to a friend's wedding a few years back. She groaned as she pulled her car to a stop in front of her apartment building.

Iko was home for the week, so maybe she'd have some advice. With a side of squealing, no doubt.

And when it came to Iko, Cinder was rarely wrong.

"Kai? The hot one you were telling me about?!"

"I do believe I said handsome."

Iko waved her hand dismissively. "Semantics. Anyway, are you kidding? We have to find you something adorable to wear!" Her voice somehow rose in volume. "And it has to be four star restaurant appropriate!"

"Iko..."

She didn't stop talking, though thankfully her voice maintained its volume rather than increasing it. "And, my stars, we need to impress him! Show him how beautiful you really are!"

Cinder groaned. "That's not the point, Iko. It's business."

"Mhm. Sure."

In the end, Cinder left the apartment in a pair of dress pants and an old blouse she found deep in the back of her closet, buried in a box behind her old and spare prosthetic legs. Iko loaned her a pair of flats, and some help with her hair. As long as she looked professional and as though she belonged in a place like Open Ocean, she was set.

* * *

"Hi," she said to the host whose expression contained thinly-veiled judgment. "I have a reservation. For... maybe Huang?"

She spelled it out and the host nodded once and cleared his throat. "Right this way," he said, and disappeared into the dark restaurant.

Cinder hated how fancy restaurants always used such low lighting. It was hard to see and she nearly kicked a purse that was lying carelessly on the ground.

Kai brightened and stood when he saw her.

The light did reflect nicely off of his eyes. She bit her cheek to dispel the thought.

"Cinder," he said, and it was like he was announcing her arrival to the surrounding tables. He reached out a hand for her to shake. "I'm glad you could make it."

He looked so handsome. His suit was impossibly better looking than the one he had been wearing earlier.

She smiled, nervous. "You too. Have you ordered?"

"I ordered you a water, but you can get any drink you'd like. I haven't ordered an entree yet, but I did get us the jumbo lump crab cakes. I hope I wasn't being too presumptuous, but if you don't like it, I'll gladly take it."

She laughed a bit at that. "Well, you'll have to at least let me try it first." Cinder began skimming the menu and her stomach roiled at the prices, before she remembered that it was company-paid. That helped a little. "What do you recommend?" she asked.

"Lobster here is to die for," he said without looking at her. "The surf 'n turf with lobster tail and a filet is fantastic. They have an oyster bar, and any fish you order will be the best you've ever eaten. I also have to recommend the potatoes, sautéed asparagus, or rice pilaf for a side."

She blinked at him. "Frequent flier?"

"You could say that."

The real business talk didn't begin until after they'd ordered - he chose king crab legs with a side of haricot verts - why didn't they just say green beans? - and she chose grilled salmon with the asparagus. Cinder would've been lying if she claimed not to be looking forward to the $18/each crab cakes.

Kai took a sip of his scotch and then leaned forward. "Okay, Cinder. Let's talk business." Her throat ran dry. "Emperor's Auto is thrilled with all the work you've done. You've done a lot of good for our company, even though you're confined to one market."

This was it. They were going to force her to quit by offering her a promotion to a salaried position. God, she hated the idea of living on a salary. Work was much better when you could crank out overtime and holiday pay.

"We're looking to improve our corporate training courses. A few instructors have retired or moved to other markets, and we in the Greater Midwest area want to make up that gap."

She cocked a brow at him. The waitress was coming over with their appetizers, and she briefly wondered if it would be strange to eat while he talked. She caught on quickly that he had no issue doing both.

"Essentially, we'd like to promote you. If it's what you'd like, you can work at a shop when you don't have training courses."

Damn, this crab cake was amazing.

"It would be a huge increase in your current pay, and we are aware that you may not want to let go of hourly pay. You would make more in training courses than the hours you would spend in a shop, but the finer details can be discussed with an official offer."

Cinder took a drink of her water to wash down the food. "Hector's going to kill you. You, personally. You know that, right?"

Kai laughed. He sounded almost relieved. "I know. You might, too, when I remind you that corporate is in Milwaukee. The company is offering to pay your moving costs, including breaking your lease."

She could definitely use a change of pace and scenery, but he didn't need to know that just yet. "And what? I start fresh in a new place I know nothing about? I leave my best friend behind?"

"I'll be there," he replied.

She nearly choked on her crab cake. "Oh, okay. So I'll move to a city where the only person I know is a junior exec who could easily get me fired? Excellent."

He sat up straighter. "Cinder, I-"

"I'm joking," she finally said, deciding to end his torture with a light laugh. "I hardly know anyone here and I've lived here for years. And Iko is in the fashion industry. She's always traveling. If I move, all that means is she'll fly to a different city during her off time. Write me up a real offer with that solid pay raise and I'll accept."

He brightened. She had to admit to herself that she loved his smile. "That's great."

"What's great is this crab cake."

"I told you."

Their entrees came out a few minutes later. Cinder drained a lemon slice over her salmon while Kai tucked a napkin into his shirt. It was, actually, kind of endearing.

He glanced up at her with a glint in his eye. "It's very necessary," he said. "This suit is expensive."

She laughed behind her hand. "No, I'm not judging," she lied.

They made little conversation as they ate. When they finished their entrees, he asked if she wanted dessert.

"What would you recommend?" she asked, sipping her water.

"Definitely the crème brûlée."

"Lets have that."

They shared a smile.

He sat a bit straighter. "I hope this isn't too forward, but you know...," her stomach turned, "if you do accept the formal offer, I will no longer be one of your direct supervisors."

She blinked at him. "Is that important?" And how was it forward?

"I'm not sure if I've made it necessarily obvious, but I think I have feelings for you, Cinder."

Oh.

Suddenly, dessert didn't seem like such a grand idea. "And, there is a clause in the company code of conduct about employees dating their direct superiors, but we condone inter-office dating otherwise." Her mouth felt dry. "I don't want you to feel like you have to say yes. My intention isn't to back you into a corner. You've full control here. But I would like to take you on an official date once you're promoted."

For a long moment, she said nothing. The waitress appeared and Kai ordered dessert. She couldn't figure out how to speak. Cinder had been attracted to Kai for months now. Not after the first two visits, but the third was when she realized that she did have feelings for him.

She wet her lips. "That's a lot to take in."

Not exactly what she'd wanted to say.

"I know. And like I said, you don't have to say yes. The promotion will still stand."

He fixed his tie, downed the last of his scotch and chased it with a sip of water. He ran his hand through his perfectly gelled hair.

Cinder wondered if he was a good kisser. She reprimanded herself for the thought.

"I'll have to think about that," she said. What would her coworkers think?

He smiled, and he looked almost hopeful. "I can wait."

She didn't know if she wanted to wait herself, but it was pretty risky to date a coworker.

Stars, what was she thinking? She couldn't.

But he was so handsome. And kind. And a gentleman. And the way he looked at her. Stars above.

"You know, I've never had crème brûlée," Cinder told him, trying to change the subject.

Kai accepted it. "Are you serious? You've been missing out. I'll let you break the shell."

She only vaguely knew what he meant. "Th... thanks."

"It's the best part," he said, as though it was meant to help her better understand.

When the waiter brought it out, she understood. "Use the spoon," Kai instructed, "and just kind of... whack it."

She laughed. "I know how to break things, Kai."

He smirked.

Cracking the shell did sort of add to the whole experience. Upon trying it, Cinder almost wished that she'd had a whole one for herself.

She did let her mind wander this time as they shared the dessert. She had to admit that she always had been drawn to him, in a way. She needed to decide, however, if she liked him because he liked her, or if it was because she simply liked him.

How could she separate that, though?

Cinder dabbed the napkin pointlessly at her mouth, certain there was nothing on it but paranoid nonetheless.

"Thank you so much for this," she told him.

Kai waved a hand. "It wasn't my idea. But I'm glad we were able to spend some time together. I'll pass on your tentative acceptance, if you're ready for that."

"I am," said Cinder. She cleared her throat. "And, well, if Iko is out of town when I need to look for apartments, could you... could you give me some recommendations?"

"I've lived a few different places," he replied. "I'll be happy to pass along any information. And accompany you to any places that I don't have experience with, of course."

That was it. She definitely liked him.

Kai walked her to her car, and they made no conversation the whole time. It felt awkward, but the idea of saying anything felt the same.

When they stopped at her car, she turned to him. He leaned against a door, his hands in his pockets. Cinder hoped her car didn't leave any dirt on him. "Thanks again for coming," he said. "It was really nice to get to talk to you."

Her smile was small, nervous. "Thank you for the offers. Professional and otherwise."

He dipped his head. "It was my pleasure."

Cinder wondered again if he was a good kisser.

She wet her own lips. "When will I receive an official offer?"

"Probably the end of the week. They've already got a draft. If you accept by Monday, you'll be set up to move by the beginning of next month."

Three weeks. It felt like years when all she could think of now was his arms around her.

How she hated her overactive imagination.

"Are you patient enough?" Her smile grew.

Kai chuckled. "I've waited this long, haven't I?"

She felt so warm, so drawn to him. Her keys fell back into the pocket of her pants as she took another step toward him. "I suppose you have."

He leaned in. "I wouldn't want to risk getting caught."

She glanced briefly at his lips before meeting his eyes again. "I agree. That wouldn't exactly be ideal."

But then his mouth was on hers, and he was more than a good kisser. He was great.

He pulled away too soon, and she was left reeling in the thoughts of kissing him again and again.

"Goodnight, Cinder. I'll see you at the shop."

She swallowed, still not sure if that had actually happened. "Good-goodnight."

He walked away, glancing back to give her one last smile.

It was a good day.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Anyway I have a crush on one of my supervisors and this is me Handling it. Also, I have experience with all of these car problems. Some of them multiple times. And then some.


End file.
